Adjustable luggage cover



June 2l,v 1955 D. RUBENS l2,711,234

v'ADJUSTABLE LUGGAGE COVER Filed Jan. 19,1952

United States Patent ADJUSTABLE LUGGAGE covER David Rubens, Los Angeles, Calif. Application January 19, 1952, serial No. 261,275

1 claim. (cl. 19o-26) My invention relates to a cover that is adjustable to accommodate commonly used luggage of differentsizes and shapes. i

There is a recognized need for covers to protect the outer surfaces of luggage during'use in our modern high speed transportation system. At' the present, luggage may be provided with a custom tailored cover which is sometimes more expensive than the luggage it is designed to protect. Some manufacturers have provided less expensive covers designed for their particular'line of luggage, but as there is no standard dimensions in the many sizes of luggage, these covers could not be used with the luggage of other manufacturers. Furthermore, the luggage shops found it inconvenient to carry alarge inventory of covers for each of the luggage sizes. e

Accordingly, a principal object of my invention is to provide a luggage cover that is adjustable to fit luggage of various sizes.

Other important objects of my invention are to provide a luggage cover that is reversible; to'provide a cover that is simple to apply and remove; to provide a stretchable material for use in covers; to provide a stretchable material having its warp edges finished in the manufacturing process which edges form an opening in the cover; to provide a cover made from such material having a warp stretch which can be formed into a hollow shape by joining two severed edges that are transverse to the selvage ends; and to provide a hollow cover which protects all surfaces of the luggage.

I accomplish these and other objects and obtain my new results as will be apparent from the articles described in the following specifications, particularly pointed out in the claim, and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of luggage having stretched thereover my novel cover;

Fig. 2 is a partial sectional elevation view of one end of a smaller size of luggage with the edges of the cover shown lapped;

Fig. 3 is a plan view of a blank sheet of the material in relaxed form from which a cover may be made, showing a modified luggage handle opening;

Fig. 4 is a perspective view of another modification of my luggage cover stretched over luggage, and;

Fig. 5 is a similar view of a further modification of my luggage cover.

ln the drawing Fig. 1, illustrates the luggage over which is stretched my novel cover 12 having end openings 14 and 16, through which the luggage is inserted. The cover 10 is preferably made fromv a fiat stretchable material having a warp stretch in the direction indicated by arrow 18, and made into a hollow cover by joining the transverse edges and 22, except for the central portion 24, which may form an opening for the protrusion of the luggage handles 26. As the direction of stretch in the material is along the circumference of the cover it is stretchable to encircle luggage of various sizes, dependlce 2,711,234

n Patented June 21, 19,55

that when the stretch is approximately 100%, the cover can be stretchedj to accommodate luggage from the weekendersize to and including the jumbo Pullman size. The cover is secured 'on the luggage by the resiliency of the material and the luggage handle opening. It is apparent that the stretchable cover will accommodate variations in a particular size due tonen-conformity of different manufacturers. A material which has been found particularly satisfactory has been a fabric material having piecesof elastic woven in the desired direction.

` In the above construction the edges of the cover openings 14 and 16 are formed along the warp of the material and may be finished advantageously as selvage ends in therweaving process. The width of the material measured between selvage ends is dictated, as a matter in economy of material, by the largest size of luggage that the cover is to accommodate. As is illustrated, in Fig. 1, the width of the cover is made preferable sufiiciently greater than the width .of the largest size luggage so that the selvage endsmay extend around thecorners of the luggage to protect them, the stretchability of the material insuring a snug and neat fit. vWhenthe cover is to be used to accommodate a smaller size of luggage 28, as is illustrated in Fig. `2, the extending .ends 30 of the cover 12 may be lapped or doubled over the cover permitting a sufficient Portion 32 to extend around the corners of the luggage for protection. If desired the extending ends may be tucked'under the cover 12 and provide a more smooth outer fnish,not,shown. While I have illustrated only one end of the luggage 28 and cover 12, it is understood thatrthe opposite end may be similarly constructed to provide uniformity in appearance.

InFig. 3 is illustrated a cover blank 34 of the stretchable material from which my cover in Figs. 1 andl may be constructed. When the blank is cut from a roll of material the edges 36 and 38 represent the transverse cut edges and the edges 40 and 42 represent the selvage ends of the material. Whereas in Fig. l the opening 24 for the luggage handles may be formed by the transverse cut edges 20 and 22 at the same time the hollow cover is made from the at blank, in Fig. 3, I have provided a separate handle opening 44 having a binding 46, if desirable, to finish the edge. In this modification the edges 36 and 38 are bound along their entire length to form the hollow cover, and when the cover is applied to the luggage the edges 36 and 38 will be positioned on the bottom of the luggage and normally not visible.

In the modification shown in Fig. 4, the cover 48 is constructed in a manner similar to Figs. 1 and 3 with the exceptions that the luggage handle openings 24 and 44 are omitted, and secondly, the cover is applied to the luggage 50 from the top or bottom sides and not from the ends of the luggage as in the prior modifications. In this construction, either cover opening 52 and 54 may serve as the luggage handle opening. The cover 48 may be constructed of the fiat stretchable material as is illustrated by blank 42 with the transverse cut edges seamed to form a hollow construction; the edges of the openings 52 and 54, being the selvage ends. If desired, the cover 48, as well as covers 12 and 40, of the prior modifications may be constructed of a seamless tubular knit material, in which instance the edges of the openings 52 and 54 would be cut edges and may be finished in a manner to permit the openings to be stretched over the luggage when the cover is applied. An elastic binding material not shown, sewn by a zig-zag stitch is one way the edges can be iinished.

Whether the cover 48 be constructed of a flat material or a seamless tubular material, the stretch of the material is in the direction indicated by the arrow 56. The

cover 48 is adjusted for luggage of different heights in the same manner as the covers 12 and 40 were adjusted for luggage of different lengths, namely by doubling the extending edges over or under the remaining portion of the cover.

Another modification of my novel luggage cover is illustrated in Fig. 5 where the cover 58 is Vconstructed'in the form of a bag, having a closed end 60 and an open end 62 through which the luggage 64 is inserted. A tie string 66 may be provided to adjust the closure of the open end 62 and assist in retaining the cover in position on the luggage. The material of cover S8 may be constructed of a two-way stretchable fabric material, indicated by arrow 68, or a sheet rubber material if desirable. A one-way stretchable material cut on a bias may be utilized depending on the degree of stretch that may be needed.

In the preceding embodiments I have provided a stretchable cover that is adjustable to fit a plurality of different luggage sizes, which eliminates the high cost lof expensive custom tailoring and reduces' the inventory required by the luggage stores. The covers may be constrncted in a hollow tubular form having at least one opening through which the luggage can be inserted. When the luggage is made of a flat woven material the selvage ends of the material can be utilized as the finished edges and the cover simply constructed of blanks cut from a roll of the material, with the cut edges of each blank bound to form a hollow cover. When the cover is constructed of a seamless tubular knit material, tubular sections of the desired length may be utilized with the cut edges suitably bound to permit stretching. A hollow cover may be constructed with a closed end, similar to the shape of a bag, and of a material to permit a stretch both in the height and length of the luggage,

I have thus described my invention, but I desire it understood that it is' not confined to the particular forms or uses shown and described, the same being merely illustrative, and that the invention may be carried out'in other ways without departing from the spirit of my invention,

and therefore, I claim broadly the right to'employ vall equivalent instrumentalities coming within the scope of the appended claims, and by means of which, objects of my invention are sustained, and new results accomplished,

as it is obvious that the particular embodiments herein i shown and described are only some of the many that can be employed to attain these objects and accomplish these n results` g j A* y Y I claim: a An adjustable -cover for luggage comprising a tube of textile fabric open at the ends, said tube having in the mesh thereof elastic strands capable of approximately 100% stretch, disposed along the circumferential dimension of the tube, so as to allow circumferential stretching of the cover to snugly encompass luggage of various sizes from the smallest to substantially the largest of any particular type; there being a slit formed along the longitudinal direction of the tube intermediate the length thereof for the protrusion therethrough of the handle of the luggage piece; the tube being of a length sufiicient to accommodate the largest size of luggage of said type and v adapted to be tucked over the ends of smaller -sized lug# j gage pieces.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNiTED STATESPATENTS 206,976 Sands Aug. 13, 1878 656,707 Welshe Aug. 28, 1900 1,471,729 Y Guinzberg Oct. 23, 1923 1,926,429 Bendelori Sept. 12, 1933 2,098,620 Fonda etal. Nov. 9, 1937 Y 2,319,847 Y yClanton May 25, 1943 Y v2,331,762 Brown Oct. 12, 1943 2,467,471 Goldstein Apr.- 19. 1949 2,486,762 Pfeiffer Nov; l, 1949 2,617,504 Meyers Nov, 1l, 1952 2,647,595

Meyers Aug. 4, 195.3n 

